OH NO! NOT RICE AGAIN!

you need your cruciferous veggies: beef and broccoli with peppers

nasi goreng

Okay. I've had enough of the experimenting with rice and fried rice. In fact, the rice theme is not my bag and I'm getting kind of sick of it. Today I made Nasi Goreng (Indonesian fried rice) and though I know it looks the same as all the others, it tasted totally different. It called for making a spicy onion paste and the flavours were sweet and briny at the same time. Stomach didn't like it as much as the Thai Fried Rice. My mother liked it though. As well, I thought it too persnickety-finicky to make, considering fried rice is meant to be thrown together. It tasted good, but I thought it wasn't worth the effort. Out of all the rice recipes I've tried this past week, I would say the Thai Fried Rice wins hands down and the Chicken Rice is Bebe's favourite. It in fact wins for the all-time family favourite and is oh so easy.

Here's the recipe for Nasi Goreng in any case.


NASI GORENG (Indonesian Fried Rice)
2 eggs
1/4 t salt
1/3 cup oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 t chili sauce or 2 red chilies, seeded and very finely chopped
1 t shrimp paste
1 t coriander seeds
1/2 t sugar
400 g (12 2/3 oz) raw prawns, peeled and deveined
200 g (6 1/2 oz) rump steak, finely sliced
1 cup (200 g/6 1/2 oz) long-grain rice, cooked and cooled
2 t kecap manis
1 T soy sauce
4 spring onions, finely chopped
*steak and prawns may be substituted with whatever meats and veggies you have on hand

1. Beat eggs and salt until foamy. Scramble until set and put aside.
2. Combine garlic, onion, chili, shrimp paste, coriander and sugar in food processor or mortar and pestle and process or pound until a paste is formed
3. Heat 1 to 2 T of the oil in a wok or large deep frying pan; add the paste and cook over high heat for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the prawns and steak and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they change colour.
4. Add the remaining oil and the cold rice to the wok. Stir-fry, breaking up any lumps, until the rice is heated through. Add the kecap manis, soy sauce, eggs and spring onion and stir-fry for another minute